Epilogue
Lina
I had video calls with my mom while I briefly lived in Boston and then once I stayed in NYC. Sean met her that way, and he met her in person when he had to make a trip to Montreal to meet with Granddad two weeks before he proposed. It was right after he told me Justin could never interfere again.
That meeting had nothing to do with us, so I couldn’t go. My mom joined them for dinner one night, but besides that, it was all business. I don’t know the details, and I didn’t bother to ask. But Sean was happy when he got home, and it wasn’t because business went well. He’d hit it off with my mom, and my grandfather saw him as more than a business associate. I know because Mom and Granddad video called me while Sean was on the flight back.
But today’s the first time we’re all going to be in the same place together. Mom and Granddad just landed at the private airfield in Jersey. Sean and I are here to meet them. I watch them descend the steps to the tarmac, then I’m hugging them before I know it. Breda’s hugs have always been nearly as good as my mom’s, but there’s just something about hugs from the person you said your first word to. Mine was Maman.
“Elise, Jean-Peter, it’s good to see you.” Sean gives my mom kisses on each cheek and shakes my grandfather’s hand.
It’s a quiet but cheerful car ride to our new house. We finished moving in two days ago. We’re chatting as we enter the house through the garage.
“Surprise!”
Sean has his arm around me, so he pulls me behind him as he reaches back for his gun. My grandfather steps in front of my mother, reaching back too. But it only takes a second to see Sean’s family inside. It shocks me to see my mom’s older brother, my aunt, and cousins, along with Colton and Daisy, waiting for us. Even my stepmom, Maureen, is here. There’s a banner for a wedding shower.
“Whose idea was it to scream surprise to two mobsters?” Sean’s grumbling, but he’s smiling from ear-to-ear.
The wedding isn’t for another six weeks, so I didn’t expect this at all. We aren’t waiting or anything like that. We aren’t making sure this is the right decision. We want an early autumn wedding in Maine. Apparently, the O’Rourkes have some properties along the coast. We’d like to take advantage of the fall foliage and have an outdoor wedding.
I know a Catholic wedding would mean a lot to Sean, but I also know all the men in my family and his feel ashamed going to church when they know the sins they’ve committed and the ones they are yet to commit. He’s told me about his conflicted feelings, and the guilt he has for being a hypocrite. He’ll go when he has to for other people’s weddings, baptisms, and funerals. But I didn’t want to insist and ruin a day that’s as much about him as it is me.
“How’d you get all of this set up?” I’m standing with Breda, Saoirse, and Siobhan.
“It was Finn and Shane who organized things with your family, and Colton and Daisy. Dillan took care of the decorations. Cormac took care of the food. You’d never guess most of it is vegan. Seamus helped smuggle in the unhealthy stuff. And the three of us made sure Danny knew he’d die if he arrived too soon. We told him to ‘find’ traffic.” Breda uses air quotes and all.
I learned Cormac is the cleanest eater in the family because of some article he read as a kid about processed foods. He’s not vegan, but he owns a small organic grocery store. He says owning it is a tax write off for all the healthy “shite” he eats.
Sean wraps his arm around me again and leans to whisper in my ear. “I had no idea. Did you?”
“None. It’s amazing, but it kinda makes me wonder if our skills are slipping.”
He laughs. “I thought that too. So much for us being able to detect national secrets.”
“I’m glad though.”
“Me too. Are you happy, cailín?”
“Blissful.”
Time passes in a blur as we mingle, laugh, and eat. Good God is there a lot of food here. When I saw the tables ladened with food outside, I wondered how many people Cormac and Seamus thought they were feeding. By the time my fiancé, his brothers, his cousins, their fathers, my uncle, my cousins, and my grandfather plus Colton went through, there were practically crumbs left for the women. I had no idea sixteen mobsters could eat so much. Mair and Ally planned ahead and brought out some dishes they saved for the rest of us.
It's growing late, and I’m tired. It’s been a tremendous night, but I’m ready to just be with Sean. We keep darting glances at each other, and I know he feels the same. He excuses himself for a moment and slips out of the living room. It’s practically a grand salon in a palace, but we knew we have large families. It was part of the appeal because we can entertain with space for everyone in one room that isn’t the dining room.
When Sean comes back in, he sits beside me on the loveseat. Not two minutes later, the O’Rourke men and the Tremblay men reach into their pockets. They pull out vibrating phones, scanning the message that came in. My head spins as people say their goodbyes. My mom, Maureen, Mair, and Ally look confused, but Breda, Saoirse, Siobhan, and Daisy grin and laugh as they hug me.
“What did you do?”
Sean shrugs.
“Let me see your phone.” I put my hand out and flap my fingers.
He hands it over, and I tap the text icon. I see a group text with fifteen other names listed.
Sean
You have 5 mins to get out before I blow something up you have to fix. Say goodnight to my bride.
I look up at his unrepentant expression.
“You wouldn’t have really…”
“None of them wanted to find out.”
“Sean!”
“Hmmm.”
He scoops me over his shoulder before taking the stairs two at a time then carries me to spare the bedroom with a lock on the outside. We’ve decorated it in a style no one needs to find. Though I suspect Mair and Dillan, and Ally and Finn would appreciate it. I think they’re like us. I don’t mind everyone leaving in such a hurry. Tonight’s full of surprises.
“Strip, cailín.”
“Yes, Daddy.”
When Seamus O’Rourke learns there’s a surprise witness he’s about to cross examine, he doesn’t imagine it’ll be a woman with a man’s name. A beautiful woman with all the curves he desires. There’s one problem: she works for the wrong family. Discover Seamus and Tiernan’s story in Mob Saint.
Before you go, would you like a free extra epilogue with a steamy hotel room scene from Sean and Lina’s trip to Montreal?